Adventures in Primary Village
by Dream Ablaze
Summary: The story of two Digimon in Primary Village: SnowBotamon, the jaded and manipulative leader of the babies, and Poyomon, the everhopeful, innocent newcomer who finally makes SnowBotamon find the light in her heart. PataGato, only in baby form. :3
1. Poyomon Arrives

Okay, so this is about Gatomon (SnowBotamon) and Patamon (Poyomon) as babies in Primary Village. I know Gatomon was supposed to have hatched from an egg as Nyaromon, but that doesn't make sense since Nyaromon's In-training. xD

If you're all loyal to that, then sorry. o-o; But not really. ;3

Chapter One

Poyomon Arrives

"Give us more food!" exclaimed a small white cat-like creature, SnowBotamon, hopping up and down.

"Me too!" came mimicking cries from the other baby Digimon.

"Hold on, you'll all get your fill," Elecmon said tiredly.

They were in temperate Primary Village, the place where Digimon were born. It was a small town, where baby Digimon hatched from eggs and were taken care of by Elecmon until they digivolved into their in-training stages. And SnowBotamon was their leader.

As one of the older babies, SnowBotamon was also a mischievous Digimon who wanted nothing more than to take over the village and run it herself. At least, she told herself she wanted nothing more than that. Not that she particularly disliked Elecmon; as a matter of fact, she looked up to him, in a way. But she still wanted to reign over the town.

Another dream of hers was to be a fighter. She wanted to be able to hold her own in battle, and go out on expeditions without having to bring guards with her. All in all, she wanted to be independent, not relying on Elecmon or anyone else to provide for her. But for that to happen, she'd have to drive him out first. Which was something she felt a little bad about, really she did. But it was inevitable, she couldn't do a thing about it.

"But we're hungry!" SnowBotamon complained. "We want food NOW!"

"Yeah, now!" her followers repeated.

"SnowBotamon, have some patience! You'll never grow up into your in-training form without gaining some maturity!" Elecmon protested.

"Good! I don't WANT to grow up. Then I'd have to leave Primary Village," SnowBotamon said.

"Yeah, that would be a tragedy," muttered Elecmon.

SnowBotamon's eyes filled with tears and she sniffled. "W-why are y-you so… MEAN?"

"Aww, SnowBotamon, I'm sorry," Elecmon sighed. "I just get stressed out sometimes… I didn't really mean it." He picked up the small Digimon and hugged her. Behind his back, SnowBotamon smirked, fake tears glistening in her eyes.

"You made Snowy cry!" accused a MetalKoromon. Other babies voiced their anger.

"Kids, kids, calm down," Elecmon sighed. "Why don't you go play a game?"

They looked to SnowBotamon for approval. She nodded. "Games are good," she said. They all went scampering away.

"I still don't get why they all listen to you," Elecmon said, shaking his head as he cleaned up the food.

"Because I'm their leader!" SnowBotamon smiled.

"Back when I was a Punimon, everyone got along and listened to the Primary Village caretaker. Why can't you?"

SnowBotamon feigned ignorance and tilted her head, vacant smile still on her face.

Elecmon sighed. "Nevermind," he said. "I forget you're just a baby sometimes."

That's what YOU think, SnowBotamon thought, hopping away. I'm not just a little kid! I'm much smarter than all those other babies. I bet the only reason I'm not in-training is because I don't WANT to digivolve!

SnowBotamon had been there for quite some time now, but unlike living in uneducated bliss like most of the other babies, she felt empty inside. Her dreams were not even ones she cared much about; but she knew she wanted something. When she had hatched from her Digiegg, she had been much more warm and compassionate. But being in Primary Village so long, she had grown more bitter. She was still young, and innocent, but compared to the other babies, she was jaded.

Elecmon didn't know of this either. Even though he was the rookie around, he knew nothing of her emptiness and despondency. She was waiting for something; but what, exactly? SnowBotamon wasn't sure if she'd ever know. But she hated this feeling of waiting, without being able to do anything.

She had remembered wondering if it was power she was waiting for. So many Digimon yearned for power, only to become corrupted by it. But maybe that was what she had been longing for? That was when it started, her takeover of Primary Village. She had just been trying out the power thing, but it somehow became permanent, inescapable. She suddenly had duties to the other babies, instead of worrying about what she was really waiting for. And somehow, in that time, she had grown to want absolute power over the village. Not for any reason, really. But just because it was something in her grasp. Something she had already had a taste of; something she could imagine.

It had started out with her having to be educated. No good leader could be ignorant. There was a small library at Primary Village: mostly tiny books that taught the alphabet and numbers up to ten, but Elecmon also had some books for the older visiting Digimon. She secretly read those, and learned about various topics that were actually important. At night, she read the discarded Digi-newspaper Elecmon had already finished, and read about politics and social issues. And she began to teach herself about combat.

Mostly, she learned it all from a book Elecmon had on fighting. She learned how to use her one attack: Diamond Dust. She learned about digivolution and when Digimon were deleted. When their data was erased, they were sent back to Primary Village and hatched from eggs again.

After SnowBotamon had become leagues more intelligent than any of the other babies, her conquest began. She rallied support from the others, promising them more food and faster childhoods. She regaled them with stories of the powers they would have as Rookies and Champions and even Ultimates. When she had gained them as allies, she began to turn on Elecmon, demanding better conditions for the babies. Of course, Primary Village was a nice place, but SnowBotamon had to drive him out. It was the only way she could rule over the village.

Reflecting on how she got to where she was today, SnowBotamon flopped on top of a rock and sighed, looking out at all the others playing mindlessly. "Fools," she murmured. "All of them, complete fools."

And with that, she settled down to nap.

SnowBotamon was awakened by several babies jumping all around her. "Snowy! Snowy!" they squealed.

"What is it?" SnowBotamon sat up, yawning.

"Snowy! Elecmon said we're getting a new playmate!"

SnowBotamon blinked. "So? We get new playmates all the time."

"Yeah, but this one's not coming from a Digiegg!" said an excited Nyokimon.

"Where's it coming from, then?" SnowBotamon asked, puzzled.

"Dunno! But it's here! Come on, we're gonna go see!" Nyokimon paused. "Should we?"

SnowBotamon nodded. "I want to see this new playmate too." She actually did; she was intrigued. It had to be a baby Digimon; they were the only ones Elecmon called playmates. But why would a baby come from outside Primary Village?

She hopped over to the crowd. Elecmon stood beside a small Digimon, who was cowering behind him a little.

"Easy, easy," Elecmon said. "He's had a long journey to get here! I think he's a little shy."

The Digimon shuffled a little in front of Elecmon and smiled shyly and somewhat uncertainly at the other babies. He seemed to be made of jelly, and wiggled when he moved. He was a light blue-grey color, and looked almost like a ghost. He wore a shy smile on his face. "Hi, I'm Poyomon!" he said.

SnowBotamon rolled her eyes. Poyomon were nothing new. One had just Digivolved into Tokomon and had left Primary Village. But tons of babies pushed themselves forward to introduce themselves. SnowBotamon was about to turn away and hop back to her rock to go to sleep again, when she heard a high-pitched voice say. "Come meet our leader Snowy!"

Irritated, SnowBotamon halted. She'd just introduce herself, and that would be it. She didn't even care much anymore about where he had come from. Bored, she smiled a fake smile at Poyomon. "Hi, I'm SnowBotamon," she said.

He didn't say anything for a moment, then nodded, smiling. "I'm Poyomon!"

"Nice to meet you," she lied. "I hope you like it here! If you have any questions or anything, you can ask me." She turned and fled, going back to her rock. As she closed her eyes, she heard Elecmon telling the babies it was almost dinner time. They ran off to play, eager to squeeze in a few games before they had to eat. "Come on, Poyo!" she heard some say.

She had just drifted off to sleep again when she heard a small cough next to her. Snapping back into awareness, she didn't move. Go away, she thought. There was a pause, then another cough sounded. It was more like a clearing of the throat, trying to get her attention. SnowBotamon still did nothing. And yet the stupid baby cleared its throat again.

Forcing herself to act sweet, she sat up. "Oh! Hello," she said, seeing the newcomer Poyomon. "I was just napping." Figures it would be him, she thought. No one else would dare to disturb my rest!

"Sorry for waking you," Poyomon apologized. "But I just had a question. You said a few minutes ago I could ask you?"

"Mmhmm, right. What is it?" She wanted to go back to sleep.

"Well, I was just wondering, if it would be all right, that is, because, well, I noticed that the others call you Snowy, and it must by short for SnowBotamon, and they were calling me Poyo, so I assume that the babies here make up nicknames for everyone, so, well, I was just wondering, if it would be all right – "

"You said that part already. What are you trying to ask?" she said, in a way she thought sounded kindly and understanding.

"I was wondering if I could call you Yukimi, for YukimiBotamon. Since that's another name for SnowBotamon?"

This startled her. "How do you know that?" she asked.

"Uh, I don't know. I just know it. Learned it somewhere."

Well, she thought. This was different. A baby Digimon who knew something other than how to play or sing. Suddenly, she was interested in him again.

"So… Poyomon, you say your name was? Why don't you sit down and tell me your story? Where you came from, all that."

Poyomon smiled. "Sure!" he said.

"Poyo! Come play!" called Paomon, jumping up and down.

"No thanks!" he replied.

"But it's no fun without you," Paomon frowned.

"I'll come play later," Poyomon said.

SnowBotamon rolled her eyes. "Pesky little pea-brained dog-thing. She's always starting trouble. She doesn't even know you, to miss you! Now, the story?"

"Okay! I'm just warning you, a lot doesn't really make sense. I can't remember it very well."

"Just go ahead. Tell me what you do know."

"Not much. The first I can remember is I was in the forest. I don't know how I got there. But after, I traveled around for a long time, looking for my family and clues to my past. Not that I was very old, of course, but I didn't know how I had gotten all the way from here to there." He looked at her. "How long have you been here, Yuki-chan?"

She frowned, realizing he was calling her that. "Look, it's either SnowBotamon or YukimiBotamon," she said. "Those idiots can't wrap their puny heads around either, so they call me Snowy. But Yuki-chan, it's… not an option. I don't even know you!"

Poyomon blinked. "I'm sorry, Yuki-chan! I just want to be friends."

"And I repeat, I barely know you. You've been around what, two minutes? You're not my friend." She took a deep breath. "Sorry. What did you ask me?"

"How long have you been here?"

"A long time," she said. "I'm not sure. But it's been awhile."

"And you don't remember a Poyomon here, and leaving?"

"Well, there was one, but he Digivolved. And it was just recently, probably only about a week ago. I don't think he was you."

Poyomon shook his head. "No," he said. "I can remember further back than that. Oh, well. Anyway, while I was wandering, I was found by some Floramon. They took me in and taught me things. But then a big Digimon came and got rid of them," he said sadly. "I found out later it was a DarkTyrannomon. I escaped, but nobody else in the city we lived in did. I lived in the forest again for awhile, until I was chased by some Raremon, and a Leomon saved me. He was the one who brought me here, to his younger brother Elecmon. And… that's it."

It was not as interesting as she would have liked it to have been, but the close encounters he had had with Champion Digimon interested her. Especially since he had survived them all. "Did you fight any?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Nope," he answered. "I tried to fight the Raremon, but I only have one attack, Bubble Blow… it didn't do much good."

"Hm," SnowBotamon said. "Why did the DarkTyrannomon come to your city?"

"I don't know," Poyomon said, looking sad.

She could tell he didn't want to say anything more. "Well… thank you for telling me. You would probably have preferred to play with the other babies."

He shook his head. "I liked talking to you," he said.

"Well, you should probably go play now. Paomon looks impatient."

"I guess," he said. "Well, I'll see you at dinnertime, then!" And with that, he scurried off.

SnowBotamon watched him head shyly over to Paomon and the others, puzzled expression on her face. He was like no other baby Digimon she'd met. He was more mature, and more intelligent. He was educated, like her. She could actually stand talking to him. Could he possibly be an ally in taking over Primary Village?

No, he was still too stupid for her. She couldn't have him as an equal, it wouldn't look good. Even though he was a bit more knowledgeable than the other babies, he was still at the same rank as all them. Just her underlings, her pawns, to be used to get what she wanted: the entire village.

Okay then. xD Please R&R!


	2. Friendship

Chapter Two

Friendship

Days went on like this: SnowBotamon ruled over the baby Digimon, Elecmon became more and more tired, and Poyomon seemed to watch it all with his shy smile. He played with Paomon and the others, but also wandered routinely over to SnowBotamon's rock to talk to her: during her would-be napping hours, no less. But he was almost like an outsider, still. Not stupid enough to fit in with the others, not smart enough to be accepted by SnowBotamon. As much as he stayed on the outside watching, she watched him back, suspiciously. What was it about him that made her feel so out of place? It wasn't as if he was challenging her authority and power over the babies, but his watchful eyes made her uneasy, almost like she was doing something wrong. She didn't know why she felt this way, but even when she closed her eyes, she saw his little smile, his small bright eyes watching the whole village. It irritated her; he made her whole takeover seem almost like a game. Whenever she was planning her next step, here he would come, scurrying over, calling, "Yuki-chan!"

He was nice enough, she supposed, and if he had come to Primary Village before she had become so bored with her life there, she surely would have befriended him. But not now, after so much had changed. He didn't see this, unfortunately for her, and kept on after her, trying to be included in what she was doing. And now that he had come around, Paomon had an obvious crush on him. SnowBotamon didn't like this idea: those who acted on their feelings caused trouble. They were impulsive and didn't stay in line. Paomon was already one of the harder-to-control babies – SnowBotamon didn't need her to be even more problematic.

One day, feeling especially annoyed, she left her post at the rock and traveled to higher ground. She found another rock: flatter, wider, and warmer, and stretched out on that. Soon she was napping peacefully, further away from the babies, and out of sight.

She hadn't been asleep long before she heard an annoying voice in her sleep. "Yuki-chan!"

She opened one eye to see Poyomon standing there, smiling sincerely. "Hiya, Yuki-chan!"

She sat up. No more sleep for her now. She wanted to glare at him, but knew she couldn't. The meanest she could get to these little puffballs was by being sardonic, something they were not aware of. Sarcasm, to them, was not in existence. They took her literally for everything she said.

"Hello, Poyomon," she said. "How did you find me?" She had thought he wouldn't be able to when she moved.

"I was worried about you getting lost or too far away! SO I came looking for you."

"I'm not that far away. I could still see Primary Village over these bushes, if I jumped high enough."

"I thought you might be going further. But you didn't really."

"Nope. Why don't you go play with the others? I usually don't like to be woken up during my sleep," SnowBotamon said, trying to make her voice caring.

"Ok, Yuki-chan!" He hopped off before she could correct him on her name.

When it was finally time for dinner and SnowBotamon went back reluctantly, Paomon was waiting for her. SnowBotamon sighed inwardly. Paomon, though a fox, was not very smart.

"Snowy! Hiii!"

She plastered a smile on her face. "Hello, Paomon."

"I hafta talk to you, about Poyo!"

"Go ahead… But try and make it quick. Remember, no one will eat until I've started."

"Okay!" she said eagerly, smiling broadly. "Well, I kinda like him, you know?"

"I'd figured as much."

"So you are friends, d'you think he likes me back?"

"Woah, first of all, we're not friends. Second, I wouldn't know. I don't talk to him when I don't have to."

"Oh." None of this seemed to register in her brain. "Well, next time you talk, can you ask him? Thanks!" She scurried off to the dining area.

SnowBotamon sighed, not being able to refuse now. She hopped after Paomon. If she kept the babies waiting too long to eat, they might start a rebellion against her. To them, nothing was more important than food. That was one of the ways she had gained their support, after all.

She didn't want Paomon and Poyomon to be anything other than friends, of course. She wasn't even sure if she wanted that. Poyomon was smarter than her, and instead of making him stupid, the alliance would only increase her intelligence. It seemed almost like a good thing, but it wasn't. Too many intelligent subjects would eventually learn there was really not much behind SnowBotamon's arguments, and would educate the others in this. She would no longer have the babies to serve her.

But Paomon was watching her, so she decided to just ask him now, instead of procrastinating. At least this way she wouldn't have an excuse to talk to him.

"Poyomon, I was wondering if I could talk to you," she purred as Elecmon served the food.

He looked up. "Of course, Yuki-chan!"

"Don't call me that. It's about Paomon."

"What about her?"

"Well, you two are friends, right?"

He nodded.

"Right. So I was wondering if you liked her, as more than a friend," she said, bored.

He blinked, staring at SnowBotamon. "Umm…"

Elecmon put her food down in front of her. SnowBotamon, at being the last served, and at seeing the eager, hungry eyes of the Digimon, nodded to all of them and started eating. This was their cue to dig in also.

Poyomon, looking relieved, also started to eat again.

"Don't think I've forgotten," she warned him after a moment. "I need to give her an answer, or the idiot will just keep pestering me."

"Umm…"

"I'll tell her you don't like her, then."

"No!" he protested.

She smirked at him. "Then I'll tell her you do."

"No, don't do that, either."

Irritated, she glared at him. "Make up your mind! Do you like her or not?"

"Well, I… Hey, wouldn't you dislike it if babies were more than friends? Wouldn't they be able to, you know, rise up?"

She looked at him, suspicious, but he just gave her the same vacant smile he always had. "I can't decide if you're avoiding the subject, or just stupid."

He looked back at her silently.

"And besides, if you ask me, you're too young! I don't know why even Paomon would be so stupid as to have a crush when she's only a baby Digimon!"

Poyomon smiled and continued eating, and SnowBotamon thought he might be smarter than she had thought. Of course, she had thought of those options, the possible rebellion, but if he had thought of it, then she might be in more danger than she knew. What if all the babies had it on their minds? Was Paomon trying to take over? Maybe she just saw that Poyomon was the smartest baby besides SnowBotamon, and decided to use him to try and dethrone their leader.

SnowBotamon shook her head, annoyed at herself. She was being too paranoid. Paomon was just a baby. She couldn't think that comprehensively. SnowBotamon could, but that was because she was, in a way, older than the other babies. And so was Poyomon, or at least more intelligent than them.

The next day, SnowBotamon was intent on finding a rock that Poyomon wouldn't wake her at. She passed the one she had napped on the day before and went far beyond it, until she couldn't hear the babies playing anymore. She was still in Primary Village, but almost in the forest that surrounded it. The rock wasn't as sunny as she liked it, but at least she didn't hear any of the babies laughing. She fell asleep, wishing for more sun.

She dreamt of finding what she had been waiting for her whole life, and a wave of serenity enveloped her in the dream. This was her purpose, this was the reason she was alive. She wanted to bask in the warmth of knowing her path and embrace it fully. She didn't care about taking over the village anymore. Power was not an issue now that she knew her true self. It was the happiest she had remembered feeling, ever since she was younger, blissful and unaware, as the others were now. Her heart soared with ecstasy and she never wanted to leave the dream. It was perfection. There was nothing she wanted more than just to live it. But when she awoke, the dream – and her purpose – escaped her head.

What most agitated her was that she had been awakened by none other than Poyomon. Jumping up, she glared at him, not even masking her true feelings. "What do you WANT?" she demanded. "Why do you always have to wake me up!"

He blinked. "I-I'm sorry, Yuki-chan… I just… I just…"

Tears glistened in her eyes. "You just WHAT? You ruined it! I was about to know, and you ruined it! How could you do that!"

"I just… I was just… worried…"

"It's all your fault!" she yelled. A hot tear rolled down her cheek, much to her dismay. "I could have… I could have seen…"

"Please, Yuki-chan… don't cry… I know you will see it again, whatever it is you're talking about."

"You don't know anything! Just leave me alone!"

"I'm sorry, Yuki-chan…" Poyomon's eyes were watery now.

"Oh, shut up, you crybaby! I said leave me alone! And stop calling me Yuki-chan!"

Poyomon said nothing more, but hurried away, after giving her the saddest look she had ever seen on anyone before.

SnowBotamon fell back down on the rock and shut her eyes tight, not letting any more tears fall from them. She was ashamed at the one that had escaped, and ashamed at the way she had yelled at Poyomon. After all, he hadn't meant to do anything. As he had said, he was only worried. And the look he had given her made her stomach wrench and her heart hurt with guilt.

Even closing her eyes, the tears fell, rolling down the sides of her face. She tried to hold them in, but then found no reason to do so. There was no one around to witness this weaker side of her. So she let herself cry, but she still did it silently.

She hadn't wanted to hurt him so badly as she had. His face as he had run away was so pained she felt like a monster. Or at least more of one than she was already. She hadn't wanted to yell at him like she had. It had all come without warning. Now she wished she could take it all back. But, of course, that was what regret was. And now the only way she could feel better was to apologize to him.

Now that her tears had stopped, she smirked at the thought. Apologize! Imagine that, SnowBotamon, the ruler of all the babies at Primary Village, the Digimon whose heart was as cold as the ice she attacked with, apologizing to a tiny little Poyomon. It was absurd, really. No, she would have to just bear Poyomon being angry at her. She could stand that. Anger didn't last forever. And this way, at least maybe she'd remember her dreams next time.

Feeling a considerable amount better, but not quite able to remove the image of his sad face from her mind, SnowBotamon hopped back towards the village. When she arrived, a crowd was in a large clump, all the babies together. Creeping closer, she watched with suspicion, until Nyokimon spotted her. "Oh! Snowy!"

The crowd seemed to unfold, revealing a sad looking Poyomon at its center. He stared at SnowBotamon blankly.

"What's going on?" she asked, though she knew. Poyomon had told his sad story to all the babies, attempting to gain support from them, to get revenge on SnowBotamon. It was a good plan, and she feared it would work.

It was Paomon who answered. She advanced towards SnowBotamon. "Poyomon came here and was crying. He won't tell us what happened!"

SnowBotamon looked back to Poyomon. He hadn't told them? He hadn't stabbed her in the back after she had been so cruel to him? He wasn't even angry at her.

"You talk to him, Snowy! If anyone can find out, it's you!" Nyokimon announced, smiling.

Others nodded, agreeing. They cleared the area, until only SnowBotamon and Poyomon remained. She moved closer to him slightly. "Look, Poyomon…"

"I'm sorry, Yuki-chan! I really am. I'm really really sorry for making you not see, or something." He looked it, too. Poyomon almost seemed like he'd start crying again.

"I'm sorry too." Those three words, so sudden, felt foreign in her mouth. She flushed bright red at this. It was almost as if she was showing weakness, like when she had been crying. Only now, there were tons of baby Digimon around, not within earshot, but watching. "For yelling at you. You didn't deserve it."

Poyomon's sad face turned into his shy smile again. His eyes shone brightly with happiness. "I forgive you, Yuki-chan."

"Thank you for not telling the others… I know you could have, and they would all turn on me."

"Oh, I wouldn't do that, Yuki-chan. Just… won't you tell me about what I ruined?"

"Oh, I suspect you didn't ruin it. I probably would have forgotten it if I had woken up by myself, anyway."

Poyomon, smiling happily, moved towards her and hopped up and down with joy. "Will you tell me about it?"

"I guess. There's not very much to tell, though."

"I still want to hear, Yuki-chan!"

SnowBotamon couldn't help but smile. It wasn't a fake one, either. This was an actual smile. She could remember smiling, back when she was younger, before she had become so jaded. But the absence of it made this one seem even more valuable. She couldn't get the smile off her face, as much as she couldn't stop the happy feeling in her heart. And then she said something she never expected, something that was even more a surprise than her apology. It came more of a shock to SnowBotamon than even to Poyomon.

"Friends?"

It took a moment for Poyomon to register what she had said. He smiled, wider than she had seen him smile, and hopped up and down, before answering, "Friends!"

:3 Review please!


	3. Escape

Chapter 3

Escape

Although SnowBotamon had her first real friend, she was still distant from the rest of the babies, even Poyomon. But when he came to talk to her, she conversed with him. And she didn't even act fake most of the time. Maybe it wasn't much, but it was a start. Her head was still filled with thoughts of her purpose, though.

Hoping she would dream the same dream as before, she went to nap at the rock where she had yelled at Poyomon. Settling down to sleep, she had just closed her eyes when a voice woke her up. She was half-asleep, so she thought it was Poyomon.

"Poyomon, please, I'm trying to see it again!"

"SnowBotamon! Come here!" The white cat-like Digimon jumped up at the authoritarian voice. It was Elecmon, and he was angry.

"SnowBotamon! Don't you know what happens this far away form Primary Village? You have to stay where I can see you! There are more than just good Digimon in this world, and there may be some bad ones out here!" He picked her up and carried her down from the rock, setting her on the forest floor. "Why did you come out this far?"

"I… I… had a headache. The babies' yelling hurt it more."

"Well, you should have told me! Anyway, if you have a headache, you shouldn't wander off from the rest of the group. Come on, let's go back. You should lie down in the shade."

SnowBotamon reluctantly followed him back, and lay down inside her cradle, which she hated. "Do you need anything else?" Elecmon asked.

"No," said SnowBotamon flatly. She could never sleep this close to the babies while they were playing! She tried to go to sleep, to get back her dream, but couldn't. Pouting, she stared out at the playing Digimon. Poyomon was one of them, with Paomon and the others.

The small ghost-like baby saw her and smiled. He went over to her, and stood beside her cradle. "Isn't this the time you go and sleep on a rock?"

"Yes. But that flea-bitten Elecmon found me, and now I can't leave Primary Village to sleep anymore." She sighed, glaring out at the village.

"Well, you can always go back to your first rock, can't you?"

"I guess. But being here, not allowed to leave, makes me feel so… I don't know… trapped." She sighed and closed her eyes for a few seconds. When she re-opened them, they weren't angry slits anymore, but her normal, big dark eyes.

"I thought you were the leader here. Don't you like it?"

"Being the leader? Of course I like that."

"No, don't you like the village?"

"I used to… but… now it seems so small. I never used to feel trapped before. But now I don't want to stay here anymore." She stared up at the sky. "I guess I'm not going to take over Primary Village, after all," she said wistfully, telling herself as well as Poyomon.

"But I thought that's what you wanted to do more than anything, Yuki-chan! That's what Paomon said."

"It used to be. But I don't know anymore. Especially after having that dream… it made me realize my purpose in life. I don't remember what it is, but I know that the reason I was born isn't to take over Primary Village. It's something more. Much, much more…"

Having already been told about her dream, or at least the remembered parts, Poyomon frowned. "What do you think it is?"

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be in this position!" she huffed.

"Is there any way to find out?"

"Maybe if I can have that dream again. But I had never had it, before then. I think it has something to do with the rock I slept on."

"What were you thinking about before you went to sleep?"

She blinked. "I think it was… something about wanting to be warmer. Yes, I wanted more sun. The rock was shadier than I liked. And I also couldn't hear the babies anymore."

"Maybe that has something to do with it. I'm not sure about the warmer part, but maybe you had it because you were far enough away from the babies, Yuki-chan. Since it was about what you're supposed to do with your life, and you can't do it until you Digivolve?"

"What do you mean? Why do I have to Digivolve to do what I'm here to do?" This was an alarming thought. She didn't want to Digivolve.

"Well, you can't leave Primary Village until you're an In-training Digimon. Then you can do what you want to."

The thought had never occurred to her that she'd have to Digivolve to leave. "But… but… I don't want to grow up," she finished lamely.

"How come? All the other babies do."

"Well, I'm not one of them!"

"I know. But why don't you want to grow up, Yuki-chan?"

"I… don't know. I just don't want to."

Poyomon looked at her sadly. "I think that if you want to find your purpose, you have to grow up."

"I didn't ask your opinion! After all, I won't Digivolve until I want to. That's the only reason I'm not Nyaromon right now, you know."

"I thought it had to do with how mature you were."

"It does. But I'm already mature. So the only possible reason is that I don't Digivolve because I don't want to."

Poyomon was silent for a moment, then nodded. "I guess, Yuki-chan. Well, maybe you should try and think about how you want it to be warmer, and you might have the dream again… See you later, Yuki-chan!" He hopped off, towards an impatient Paomon.

SnowBotamon sighed. Why did she suddenly want to leave Primary Village? It was an itching feeling, almost in her bones. She wanted to leave behind the shackles of this village and this stupid cradle, and pursue her real dreams, her real purpose. Would she ever accomplish what she was supposed to if she didn't leave Primary Village? Suddenly, the thought of staying in the village all her life, until she was an old Digimon, but still a baby, made her feel queasy.

SnowBotamon didn't say much the next few days. She was still reflecting on what Poyomon had said, and what she had realized. She wanted to leave the village, but didn't want to grow up. But maybe leaving Primary Village was a form of growing up? She didn't know. But she knew she didn't want to grow old as a baby.

Days turned into weeks, and many of the babies Digivolved into their In-training forms. SnowBotamon watched them leave the village happily, and felt sick. She wanted to go! It wasn't fair. Why should she have to stay there, while the babies she ruled over leave? It's because they matured and grew up, a voice inside her head told her rationally. But she replied to it with another voice: Shut up!

Elecmon was worried about her. He had asked her why she wasn't as outgoing as usual, and why she was more reserved. She mostly stayed inside her cradle, not even venturing to her first rock. Elecmon thought she was sick, still, and had doctor Digimon come and see her. But they could find nothing wrong with her. SnowBotamon knew that what was ailing her wasn't physical. She had lost the will to take over the village, and had settled into the role of just another baby.

Poyomon was worried as well. He frequently visited her, asking about her dreams, and how she felt. He asked her why she didn't go back to the rock, because he knew she hated her cradle. He wondered who would Digivolve next, and who after that. But he never asked when she thought she'd Digivolve.

One day, Paomon and Poyomon both approached her. "Snowy, Snowy!" Paomon squeaked.

"Hi, Paomon," SnowBotamon sighed.

"Yuki-chan, Paomon says that she heard Elecmon talking to one of the doctors, and she said that she thinks your condition is based on being stuck in your baby form," Poyomon said.

This was almost true, so SnowBotamon looked towards them and listened.

"She said that if you wanna get better, you hafta Digivolve! Your mind and all this stuff keeps growing, but your body won't, and it makes you sick," Paomon told her.

"Well, that's nice, but I'm not going to Digivolve anytime soon. The reason I'm sick isn't physical like that."

"But it could also be a part of it," Poyomon said. "Or it might happen soon. It could kill you, SnowBotamon!"

"Trust me, that's not why I'm sick. I don't want to Digivolve. I can, it's just that I don't want to."

Only it seemed more and more of an issue every day. Something inside her was trying to make itself heard. But she wouldn't let it. It pushed against her whole being, trying to be let out. But she kept it inside, not letting it escape. She didn't know what it was, but she had a feeling it was trying to make her Digivolve. And she couldn't. She didn't want to grow up.

It was getting harder and harder as the days went on. It didn't hurt, and her whole being told her she wanted to Digivolve. But her mind, steadfast on her staying a baby, wouldn't let it work. And yet she wanted to escape from the village. So badly.

Realizing that was what she had to do, she smiled to herself. If only she could get away with it, she'd have freedom. Her smile quickly turned into a frown. What was she thinking? Of course she could get away with it! She was far more educated than Elecmon expected her to be, and leaving Primary Village wasn't exactly a prison break. There were no walls, no fences. She could escape easily if he wasn't watching.

Unfortunately, he was. He was always worried about her lately, since she was "sick". He made sure she was always in her cradle, and the few times she left it, he kept a close eye on her, making sure she didn't collapse.

She would have to rely on her followers to help her. MetalKoromon and Nyokimon, whom she considered her most loyal, were good at stirring things up. MetalKoromon was known for his bad temper at those who angered his friends, and Nyokimon cried at the drop of a hat. They also would keep her secret, though she'd have to lie to them about her reasons for leaving Primary Village. They couldn't know she wasn't coming back.

She sat up in her cradle and looked out at the village around her. The babies were playing, as usual. She saw Paomon following Poyomon around like a shadow. What about Poyomon? Could she tell him?

No, she decided. He would suspect she was up to something more. And even though he was the only one she respected – if only a tiny bit, and nothing more – she couldn't have him know.

"MetalKoromon! Nyokimon!" she called out. Immediately, the two dropped whatever they were doing and hurried over to her.

"I have a favor to ask of you two," she purred.

"'Course!" Nyokimon smiled.

"I was interested in leaving Primary Village for a few minutes. Not forever, just a little while. After all, if I'm to have any sense of what kind of ruler we need, I need to see other areas, and get ideas from them. I won't be gone long, but I need you two to divert Elecmon's attention while I get away. You know how he is – he wouldn't let me go, until I was an In-training Digimon." She rolled her eyes, smiling hopelessly.

Nyokimon and MetalKoromon giggled, happy at being let in on this. "'Course we help you, Snowy!" MetalKoromon said.

"Thanks. You guys are the greatest. Remember, don't tell anyone, especially not Elecmon." SnowBotamon smiled at them for a moment, hoping it made her look sensitive and grateful. "Now, here's what I need you to do…" Her eyes narrowed into small slits as they leaned in, conspiratorially.

"ELECKY! ELECKY!" wailed Nyokimon. "Me-Koro is maaaaad at meeeeeee!"

Elecmon sighed, and hurried over to the crying Digimon, surrounded by tons of other babies. They were oblivious to what was going on, though.

MetalKoromon glared down at a scared-looking, sobbing Nyokimon. "YOU BROKE MY TOY!" he accused.

The tired-looking caretaker shook his head. "MetalKoromon, calm down," he pleaded. "Nyokimon, please stop crying… it'll be okay…"

SnowBotamon peered over the side of the cradle. There was still not enough to distract him. She wasn't exactly able to camouflage with her surroundings. A pure white ball of fluff, no matter how small, was sure to attract his attention. His back wasn't completely facing her, and Elecmon had excellent hearing.

"IT'S NOT OKAAAAY! HE'S SO MEEEEEAAAN TO MEEEE!" screeched Nyokimon, dragging out the vowels, long enough for SnowBotamon to slip off the cradle and land on the ground.

"SHE BROKE ME TOY!" fumed MetalKoromon.

"Shh, quiet, you two, we can work this out!"

"I'm so scaaaaaaaa-aaaared," Nyokimon sobbed. "Me-Koro is gonna hurt me! He told me!"

"MetalKoromon, is this true?" Elecmon looked at MetalKoromon disapprovingly.

"She started it! I told her if she broke another one of my toys – "

"I DIDN'T MEEEEAAAN TO!"

"SHUT UP! I'M TALKING!"

This only made Nyokimon cry harder. "ELECKY! HE TOLD ME TO SHUT UP!"

"MetalKoromon, don't say that! Nyokimon, please, be quiet!" Elecmon, along with many other babies, winced from the sound.

"Elecky agrees with me! SHUT UP!" MetalKoromon yelled.

"No, MetalKoromon! We don't say that here!"

SnowBotamon started to hop away, as quietly and quickly as she could.

"BUT SHE BROKE MY TOY!"

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO, STUPID HEAD!"

"Nyokimon, don't call names!" Elecmon desperately tried to control them.

"YEAH, YOU UGLY STINKBUG!" MetalKoromon yelled at Nyokimon.

"He called ME a name, Elecky. ELECKY! HE CALLED ME A NAME!"

SnowBotamon reached the edge of the bushes and paused for a moment, looking back. So this was it: she was leaving Primary Village forever. She hadn't been able to say goodbye to anyone, not even Poyomon. She sniffed slightly at the thought. She wasn't sentimental, she hated this place! She couldn't wait to explore. Besides, Poyomon was barely her friend, anyway. He just followed her around, and could sometimes carry a decent, intelligent conversation. It wasn't like she would miss him, or anything.

And yet… she would.

She squeezed her eyes closed. No she wouldn't! Why had she even had that idea? Sure, he was the only one who had seen her true side, the angry, tired, lonesome side, and the only one who knew how lost she really felt. He knew she didn't care about taking over Primary Village anymore, that it was only a temporary dream to begin with. He knew how trapped she felt, and how much she wanted to escape and be free of the village. But it wasn't like she cared about him. He was a friend, perhaps, but no more permanent than her hopes of taking over the village. So how come when she thought of never again hearing his delighted cry of "Yuki-chan!", she felt even more lost than when she had woken up without a memory of her dream?

She reopened her eyes. Immediately, they fell across Poyomon and Paomon. And Poyomon was staring right at her. He wasn't smiling like usual, but also wasn't sad like she'd seen him before, either. He just looked confused, almost, like he didn't know what she was doing. Or maybe that he knew, but didn't want to accept it, admit it. He glanced between SnowBotamon and Elecmon and the scene, suddenly realizing it was all staged. Something changed in his eyes, and he looked back to SnowBotamon. She gave him the smallest shaking of her head, urging him not to tell Elecmon she was escaping.

Forcing herself to look away, SnowBotamon felt a wave of sadness. She knew she couldn't stay behind any longer. Her bones itched for open land. So she left, hopping away, faster than she had ever gone before, not looking back at the village once.

What will happen once SnowBotamon is in the wild? xO Review please. :3


	4. Life Outside Primary Village

Chapter Four

Life Outside Primary Village

SnowBotamon woke up so early the sunlight was just appearing on the horizon, pale streaks of dawn inching up over the indigo sky. She shivered a little; she had never spent the whole night outside her cradle, and had realized it was colder in the wild. She had slept badly, tossing and turning all night long in a hollowed-out section of a dead tree. It provided her shelter from the wind, but not much else. Her temporary bed was spiky and uncomfortable, and even for her was a tight squeeze. Nevertheless, she woke sore, cranky, and tired. And above all other things, she was hungry.

She hadn't eaten since she left Primary Village. She had traveled all through the rest of the day, and stayed in the tree at night. She was achy from her journey, and also from the unsatisfactory night's sleep, which made her bones hurt even more than usual. She was so tired, she had to work to control her form. A part of her wanted to Digivolve so badly, and another part, her more conscious self, wouldn't allow herself to.

SnowBotamon hopped out of the uncomfortable tree hollow and looked around. Her stomach growled, and she sighed. She had to find food, soon, or else she wouldn't have enough energy to make this day's journey. But what could she eat? Elecmon wasn't here to make food for her. She'd have to find food herself. But where?

She saw patches of grass around her, and made a face. She knew some Digimon ate it, but also didn't want to be one. "There has to be something better," she said to herself.

After a long walk around the area she was in, she found that there were only mushrooms and the grass. Elecmon had taught the babies to never eat mushrooms, and she had read about the poisonous kinds, but not enough to distinguish the edible ones from the others. She wasn't fast enough or strong enough to catch another Digimon to eat by herself. And her stomach was growling even more loudly now.

Grimacing and feeling like she had lowered herself considerably, SnowBotamon sulkily went to the grass and sniffed it. She debated her options in her head: eat the grass, or starve. It didn't smell that bad; and it had a few dewdrops on it from the night. Tentatively, she bit off the tip of a blade.

Scrunching her eyes up, she prepared for the worst as she chewed it, but soon relaxed. The grass wasn't as terrible as she thought it would be, but it didn't have a taste at all. So she sighed and kept munching away at the grass.

After an hour of doing this same procedure, she was still hungry, but not as much so. Annoyed, she decided just to start walking again, and maybe she'd find some better food soon.

As she made her way through the trees, she kept her eyes trained on the branches above, scanning them for berries. She only occasionally glanced in front of her to see if she was about to collide with anything. She went fast, a scowl on her face.

She was paying so much attention to finding berries, she didn't notice the barely audible sounds behind her, or see the Digimon tracking her. She was being followed, by a restless DemiMeramon also looking for a meal, and a chase.

She had been traveling for around a quarter of an hour when she saw a berry. It was a single blackberry in a spiky plant, but it was something. Her eyes lit up and she hopped towards it quickly. Seeing nothing but the tiny dark purple berry, she forgot about the thorns and only recalled them when she came face-to-face with a spiked leaf. Eyes widening, she grimaced at realizing she was only about an inch away from certain pain. And the berry that had seemed accessible before was now high above her head. She leaned back, staring up at it in awe. Any other baby would have given up and looked for the next blackberry bush, but SnowBotamon was both very different from others her level and extremely determined.

She summoned up her energy, painted a scowl on her face, and leapt as high as she could at the berry. Keeping her eyes on the prize, she neared the small berry and snagged it in her mouth, then fell back to the ground. Rolling back slightly, she smirked and ate the berry before proclaiming, "Success!"

In a few seconds, of course, she was still as hungry as before, if not more so from having a taste of food. More irritated now than ever, she was about to continue along and search for more berry plants when she spotted a small, green-ish blackberry nestled high in the bush. It was small, and not entirely ripe yet, but it was food, and it wasn't grass. Again she summoned herself up, knowing that this jump was going to be harder, and sprang.

She missed this berry by a few inches and plummeted to the ground with a soft thump, issuing a wince from her. But she didn't give up. She jumped again, and still landed without profit. She tried again, and again, her jumps continually getting closer yet not quite reaching her target. The next time, she took a deep breath and leapt, using all her muscles to bring her up as high as she could. Her eyes gleamed and she grinned, seeing she was going to make it this time. She grabbed the berry in her mouth and closed her eyes in happiness. Then she felt herself falling back down again, but towards the bush. Her eyes flew open just as she was scraped and scratched by the thorns as she fell into the blackberry bush.

They were sharp and painful, especially to her soft baby fur, and she cried out in pain, eyes now shut tight, as her little round body was torn by the thorns on her way down. Finally she landed on the forest floor. Looking around through tear-blurred eyes, she saw she was in a kind of cage made from the thorns and leaves of the blackberry bush. She was in a closed-in hollowed place just a little larger than she. Somewhere along the way, she had lost the blackberry, and there it sat, near her. She grabbed it again and gobbled it down greedily. Hurting from the pain of moving again, she whimpered a little at the pain she felt from the cuts and in her bones. Her coat was bloody in places where the thorns had slashed her. For awhile all she could do was lie there in the claustrophobic thicket. Her eyes were brimming with tears, but she wouldn't let them spill out. She wouldn't let herself cry, ever.

Once the pain of moving had lessened, she weakly got back up and ventured slowly over to the side of the enclosed area. Inspecting the thorny wall, she looked for any openings she could maneuver her way through. She didn't see any large enough spaces among the twisting vines, but she did notice a thin space that she might be able to squeeze herself out of. It looked painful though; rimmed with thorns. It took her a few minutes before she bit her lip, set her face, and remembered she wasn't a baby. She proceeded towards the space and as carefully as she could, tried to slide out. The hateful thorns cut into her, but she didn't cry out. To do so would mean to lose energy, precious energy that she had to keep.

Sweat glistened on her fur. Her coat was a dust-like color now at best; the dirt from traveling, though she had tried to clean it best she could, had combined with the blood from her cuts to form a kind of dull grey-brown hue. But she didn't care about that now, even though more and more of the thorns tore at her and opened new wounds as she made her way slowly through the narrow passageway of vines.

Up ahead, she could see daylight. She panted heavily from the effort of avoiding thorns, the new cuts and scrapes she was accumulating, the increasing pain her bones felt from her falls, the lack of energy she possessed from her fasting, and finally her wretched Digivolution trying to take place. The pain all blended together to make one dark cloud hovering over her, blocking out everything she was fighting for. She didn't want it to be this way; she wanted to be able to live on her own. All she ever wanted was to be able to understand her meaning, her purpose! Why did she have to go through all this pain? Maybe she could just give up on it. Maybe her purpose didn't matter; maybe it was all something she made up just to feel different, more important, from the other babies. Maybe she had just wanted to pretend she had some master plan laid out for her, and her mind had convinced her this was true. How _convenient_ it was, she realized, that her purpose was somehow a mystery! That would make it all the easier to keep going and to believe foolishly that she was actually going to accomplish something with her life.

This hurt more than all the other pains combined. It drained her energy completely and she collapsed to lie atop a somewhat smooth branch. She couldn't keep her eyes open, as much as she fought them. They were clouded with tears, tears from the immense pain she felt now. She had failed to do what she had always wanted to. She had no purpose, nothing special that set her apart from anyone else. She was just another baby. And through her clouded eyes, she saw the light of freedom at the end of the tunnel of thorns. It was the last thing she saw, she yearned for, before she fell into a deep sleep.

And, as she slept, she dreamt.

Nothing hurt anymore. Her pain had slipped away as quickly as she could manipulate the babies at Primary Village. But her thoughts weren't of manipulation now. They weren't on anything bad like this. They were only on good things; things that made her feel light, almost able to fly. She wanted to fly, now. She had an urge to do so. And, she realized with shock, she was having another dream like she had had before. She was seeing her purpose. Or feeling it, more like. It wasn't written in front of her, but all of a sudden, she just knew. This was what her purpose was. This was what everything she had ever done was all leading up to. This was what would finally make her free and let her fly.

And yet, the whole time she was dreaming, as she was having this feeling, she couldn't see a thing. Brilliant pale-pink light was blinding her, shining gloriously and healing everything that was wrong. And suddenly, the light vanished, leaving behind black. She couldn't see for a few moments, then her eyes adjusted and could see clearly. And at that moment, the vision changed again, to reveal a symbol that slightly resembled a pale pink sun. This was gleaming and pulsing with the radiance from before. This was the same dream she had before, she knew somehow. She felt the same way: peaceful, serene, safe. And as quickly as it had started, the dream ended and she awoke.

SnowBotamon opened her eyes and looked around. She was still in the same place, the tunnel of thorns, and her wounds were still there, hurting. But they seemed to hurt less now. She realized she was smiling. She let herself for a few minutes as she sat there and reflected. She did have a purpose. She knew it now. She wasn't exactly sure what, but she knew it was something true. How could a dream like that be wrong?

When she blinked, the image of the sun was emblazoned into her mind's eye. It still burned with immense light. Somehow, this gave her the strength to get up and continue walking. There was a reason to keep going. Her purpose, her whole reason was worth fighting for. And she wasn't going to give up now.

Gritting her teeth, she wiped the smile off her face – no matter how happy it made her feel – and set off towards the end of the tunnel with a stubborn scowl.

This time as she maneuvered around the thorns, she did so with less caution and more speed. They still cut her, but they didn't hurt as much. And her energy had been replenished slightly, so she was more graceful. She never looked back at where she had come from, but kept her eyes set on the light in front of her. She didn't blink once until she came to the end of the tunnel and squeezed out, feeling the last of the thorns slashing her as she emerged. But she didn't care anymore. Closing her eyes with relief, SnowBotamon laid back on the ground. With her eyelids shut, she saw the symbol again, blazing as strongly as ever. It made her smile slightly, feeling elated. Until she heard a voice nearby that made her fur stand on end.

"Nice job, kitty," it hissed.

She was extremely startled and jumped up. Her heart racing, she saw the DemiMeramon that had been following her without her knowing. "Who-who are you?" she demanded.

"DemiMeramon," he said. "And I must admit, SnowBotamon, your resourcefulness for that of a baby's is very advanced. However, I'm a bit hungry, so I'll just have to eat you now." DemiMeramon grinned, eyes gleaming.

SnowBotamon glared back at him, eyes in slits. "Just try and touch me and you'll be sorry," she spat.

"Your defiant eyes are almost enough to frighten me away," he said. "But not quite. I'm not afraid of you, little kitten." He hovered closer to her. "Shall we begin, then?"

"I'll begin it and end it too!" SnowBotamon growled. "Diamond Dust!" Pieces of ice shot out of her mouth at DemiMeramon.

He smirked as the ice hit him and fell to the ground as water droplets. "You may be resourceful, but you're still a baby. Didn't you notice that I'm made of fire?"

SnowBotamon continued to glare at him, but she felt panicky inside. She didn't have any other attacks besides Diamond Dust! How could she fight a fire Digimon like him?

She had to run. She didn't know how she'd be able to outrun DemiMeramon, especially being as tired as she was, but she had to get away. Now that she had her purpose, she couldn't just give up and get killed! It was either run or fight from now on. And she couldn't fight in this condition, or against this enemy.

She leaped away, hopping as fast as her little body could take her. DemiMeramon chuckled and took off after her. SnowBotamon gulped as she fled. A thought came to her. If she Digivolved, maybe she could fight…

No, she wouldn't Digivolve. She didn't want to Digivolve right now! Even though she didn't care much anymore about her Primary Village takeover, she didn't want to become her In-Training form. After all, it was the classic case of brains over brawn. She _chose_ to stay a baby. She could control her Digivolution from Baby to In-Training. It was proving her brain had complete and total control over everything in her body.

She glanced back at her pursuer. He trailed after her, an evil smirk on his face. "I've got you now," he said. She was about to turn around again and face forward, but before she could, before she even had time to analyze what DemiMeramon had said, she heard another voice.

"Yuki-chan!"

A shock went through her. Poyomon? He was here? Or was she just imagining it? She looked around, but continued running. "Poyomon!" she called out. Her voice was full of much more pain than she had expected.

"Watch out, kitty cat," DemiMeramon smirked. SnowBotamon spun back around, facing forwards. An enormous gap in the ground loomed in front of her: a cliff. Squeaking, she tried to stop. She shut her eyes tight and waited until she was completely stopped, then peeked out of one eye. She had stopped right in front of the cliff. Sighing with relief, she closed her eyes again.

Until she was rammed from behind by what felt like fire. It burned her, and she yowled in pain. She went flying over the cliff's edge: it seemed in slow motion.

"Cat on the rocks – my favorite drink!" DemiMeramon laughed.

_Idiot_, SnowBotamon thought, _that didn't even make sense._

"Unfortunately, you don't have any feet to land on when you fall!" DemiMeramon continued.

It felt so surreal. How could she die? She had just figured out her purpose, in a way. She had just gotten hope to keep on waiting for her light, and it would come.

"Poyomon!" she called out again, as she fell over the cliff.

Poor SnowBotamon. ;-; Review or DemiMeramon will make even more stupid cat jokes! xD


	5. More Important than Life

Chapter Five

More Important than Life

SnowBotamon had closed her eyes and prepared for the worst as she fell. But, it seemed, miraculously, she felt herself slam to the ground much sooner, and with less impact that she had expected.

She opened her eyes to look around. She had landed on a tiny rock protrusion jutting off the cliff's wall. If she had been anything but a baby Digimon, she would have missed it completely and fallen to her death. Her heart was racing as she looked up at the top of the cliff, where DemiMeramon was leering at her.

"You're very lucky," he said angrily. "But, then again, this way I get to push you off again."

"Yuki-chan!" came Poyomon's voice again.

"Poyomon? Poyomon! Where are you?" SnowBotamon begged.

Suddenly, Poyomon's head appeared at the edge of the cliff. "Yuki-chan!"

SnowBotamon couldn't help smiling when she saw him. "Poyomon!"

"Where did you come from?" DemiMeramon demanded. "Oh well. I'll eat you too! And first, since you're up here!"

Poyomon shook with fear. SnowBotamon's smile faded and she felt her heart sink when she saw how scared he was. She couldn't let Poyomon be killed too.

"Poyomon, you have to run away!" she called out. "You can still get away from here and back to the village."

Poyomon shook his head slowly. "N-no, Yuki-chan… I came to h-help you!" He took a deep breath. "Acid Bubbles!"

Greenish, acidic bubbles shot out of his mouth and at DemiMeramon. SnowBotamon's face lit up as they hit him and he was shoved back a little. "Acid and water combined!" she marveled. Maybe Poyomon was a baby, and DemiMeramon was In-Training, but Poyomon's attack had two advantages over DemiMeramon!

The angry fireball Digimon rammed into Poyomon, burning him and shoving him back. Poyomon's eyes squeezed tight as he tried not to cry. He attacked again. "Acid Bubbles!"

DemiMeramon shot fire out if its own mouth, which engulfed and popped the bubbles. It continued on and slammed into Poyomon, sending him flying backwards.

"Oh no!" SnowBotamon gasped. She couldn't see Poyomon anymore; he was too far away from the edge. She guessed that was a good thing, but she dreaded that DemiMeramon would still kill him, either way.

She had to do something! Her eyes scanned around and she noticed smaller rock protrusions. Maybe she could make it up them and try and help Poyomon. Summoning up her strength, she leapt for the closest one. She missed it, and fell back down to the larger one. She was too little to get to it.

"Poyomon! Run!" she called out again, getting angrier.

"No, Yuki-chan!"

SnowBotamon's eyes narrowed into slits. Why wasn't he listening to her? She could say two words to any of the other babies and they'd obey her mindlessly. Why was Poyomon so different from them? He was even more foolish than the other babies!

"Acid Bubb – ahh!" Poyomon's voice rang out.

SnowBotamon gasped. "Poyomon! Are you okay?"

"Y-yes, Yuki-chan," came the dull reply.

"Not for long," DemiMeramon laughed. "One more hit from me and he's a goner!"

"Yuki-chan… I'm sorry I couldn't save you..."

"POYOMON!" SnowBotamon shut her eyes tight to try not to cry. She couldn't just give up! She opened them again, determined. There had to be something she could do… Her eyes fell across the pieces of rock that could be used to hop up to the top of the cliff. But she had been so far away from the closest one when she tried to jump…

But, would an In-training Digimon be able to make it there?

Yes, she thought. And each step was big enough for one, too. But she couldn't Digivolve! She didn't want to be an In-training Digimon! Maybe there was another way. Maybe Elecmon would come along soon and save them.

She heard as DemiMeramon sent tiny attacks to jab Poyomon, and she heard his cries. The fire Digimon was just torturing him now.

"Y-yuki…chan…" she heard Poyomon say once more.

She couldn't let him die. And before she knew what she was doing, she felt something stir inside of her, and finally it was free.

"SnowBotamon Digivolve to…" She closed her eyes and felt her body expanding. She was growing bigger. Her tail started to grow, and her ears became pointed. Her eyes grew larger, and her teeth stronger and sharper. She opened her eyes to see she was no longer white, but a light green. She looked to her tail and saw it had purple stripes across it. She looked at her new form. And, the strangest thing about it was that she didn't feel sad at all. She felt free. "…Nyaromon!"

Nyaromon. Her new name. She was no longer SnowBotamon, she was no longer a baby. She was Nyaromon.

She realized she was smiling, but quickly frowned. It was time to save Poyomon! She leaped up to the first rock easily, then to the next, and the next, all in a series of graceful jumps. Finally, she was back on solid ground.

Poyomon was collapsed on the ground, being pelted with tiny sparks. His eyes were closed. DemiMeramon, hovering overhead, hadn't noticed Nyaromon's Digivolution or her return to the cliff side.

Glaring at him, she leaped into the air. "Tail whip!" Her new tail slammed against him, and he flew forward in the air.

Turning around, surprise filled his face, but he masked it with a glare. "Kitty's got claws," he said.

"Stop making stupid cat jokes!" Nyaromon demanded. "Tail whip!" She leaped up again and lashed him with her tail. The move was so swift that her tail wasn't even burnt.

He tried to retaliate, but she was too quick now that she was In-training. She jumped away from his fire, and jumped up again. "Tail whip!" She launched a series of fast attacks on him with her tail before she landed back on the ground, between DemiMeramon and Poyomon.

DemiMeramon also fell to the ground, face full of pain. He tried to get up, but Nyaromon leapt at him with her tail ready to strike again. She only had to hit him one more time before he surrendered. "Okay! Okay! I'm going!" As he floated off quickly, she heard him muttering, "Cats have more than nine lives these days…"

Nyaromon hit the ground, exhausted. She had used the last of her energy to fight DemiMeramon, but now she barely had any left. She looked over to Poyomon. He hadn't moved. Nyaromon hopped over to him.

"Poyomon! Poyomon! Are you okay!"

He opened his eyes a tiny bit. "Yuki-chan…"

Nyaromon smiled in relief, fighting back tears. "Poyomon… Please hang on…"

He closed his eyes again, smiling a tiny bit. "I'm not going anywhere, Yuki-chan…"

She had no arms, but she curled her tail around him and hugged him the best she could.

"Are you really leaving, Snowy?" cried all the babies mournfully.

Nyaromon nodded. "But I told you, I'm Nyaromon now. Not SnowBotamon anymore."

"You'll always be Snowy to us!" MetalKoromon said.

"Well, I have to leave. I'm not a baby anymore."

"You'll go say goodbye to Elecmon and Poyomon, right?" Paomon asked.

Nyaromon nodded. "Of course," she said.

It was about two days since she and Poyomon had fought with DemiMeramon, and Elecmon had found them in the forest. Poyomon had run away looking for SnowBotamon, and Elecmon finally went out to look for them. He had found them in the same place they had been.

Nyaromon healed much faster than she was used to. After one nights' sleep, she had felt fine, and by the middle of the next day, she was completely healed. Poyomon, however, was healing more slowly. Elecmon wasn't letting him leave his cradle now, because he was scared he'd get hurt again. And he had set Poyomon's cradle a little bit away from the others, because his immune system was low right now and couldn't handle any diseases the babies might have.

Nyaromon knew she had to leave, but she wanted to say goodbye to Poyomon first. He hadn't been awake much in the past two days, but she was hoping this time he would be well enough to say goodbye to her. Every time she thought about leaving Primary Village, her heart sank. She didn't want to leave. But this confused her. Of course, she hadn't wanted to when she was a baby, but she was now a bit more mature, and knew she had to leave. She was even looking forward to it a little, now that she was fast enough to catch food that wasn't grass. It wasn't as if she really liked the village that much. The same went for Elecmon – she respected him a little, but she didn't think she'd miss him. And she'd be glad to get away from the babies.

So what was it that made her not want to leave?

She crossed the village to Poyomon's cradle, where Elecmon was. He gave her a little sad smile. "Sorry," he said. "Poyomon's not awake right now… he's still very tired."

Nyaromon felt numb. She had to leave now, she knew. But she couldn't say goodbye to him? She told herself she was being silly. He was just another baby. But then… she knew that wasn't true.

"There's one thing I want to ask you before I go, Elecmon," she said.

"Go ahead."

"I just… why did I Digivolve? That whole time, my mind was controlling what my body did. I told myself that I could force myself not to Digivolve; that my brain had complete reign over my body. And it worked, too. Until then. I just… Do you know why I Digivolved?"

Elecmon smiled a tiny bit. "Mind over matter," he said. "I see. But… did you ever think that there might be something a little stronger than even your mind?"

Nyaromon stared at him, confused. "I… What do you mean?"

"People are said to rule with either their head or their heart. I'm sure you've thought yourself a logical person who rules by their head, right?"

"Well, yes. I mean, your heart isn't really anything people say it is. After all, your brain has power over it."

"You don't think the heart is important?"

"Well, not in decision-making, of course. It's a vital organ, but it doesn't have any powers like that."

"Ah," Elecmon said. "Well, you're right and wrong."

Nyaromon narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?"

"The heart is, as you said, an organ. It is controlled by the brain, though not the conscious part. But the heart is also something more. It represents your soul and the very essence of you. The heart may not be a literal place where your emotions and feelings are stored, but it symbolizes this."

"Elecmon, I don't understand where you're going with this. What does this have to do with my Digivolving?"

"Even those who say they rule with their head will sometimes give into what their heart is telling them to do. The mind has power over the literal heart, as you said, but the abstract heart has power over the mind."

"So you're saying my heart wanted me to Digivolve?"

Elecmon nodded.

"Then why didn't it do it before? I could control it with my head before."

Elecmon glanced at Poyomon. "Your heart didn't want it until you realized that you'd rather do the one thing you'd do anything to avoid than have Poyomon be killed."

This jolted through Nyaromon like a shock. She remembered something she had thought before. She'd rather die than Digivolve. For a self-centered Digimon as she was – or had been, perhaps; she was more mature now – her life was everything to her. But she didn't want to Digivolve so much that she would rather have had her life taken away from her.

This seemed stupid to her now, especially that she felt so free and happy as Nyaromon. How foolish she had been as SnowBotamon! But maybe she'd think the same about herself now, when she became Salamon. That was too far away to think about now, though.

She had Digivolved to save Poyomon, though.

What did that mean? She would have rather died than Digivolve, but she became Nyaromon because Poyomon was in danger of dying. Did that mean she was willing to give up her own life for him?

"Oh," she said simply.

"Your heart then took over, and your mind couldn't stop it," Elecmon said.

Nyaromon was silent.

"You found something more important to you than your own life," he told her softly.

"I… I'd better go," she said, glancing towards Poyomon again. "Poyomon… Goodbye."

She turned around, trying not to cry. She couldn't cry. Her mind wouldn't let her.

"Yuki-chan?" came a weak voice.

Nyaromon turned around again, a smile spreading across her face. She couldn't help it this time. She smiled, and laughed, happier than she'd been in all her life. "Poyomon!"

His eyes were open and he sat up. "Yuki-chan, are you leaving?"

She nodded. "I have to go. How do you feel?"

"Better, I think." He frowned. "Yuki-chan, I don't want you to leave…"

"I don't want to either," she said. "But I have to."

"Can't you wait a little bit? I can try and make myself Digivolve!"

"No, Poyomon… I have to go now."

"You're not ready to Digivolve yet," Elecmon told him.

"Yuki-chan… Will I ever see you again?"

She didn't know, in her head. But something in her heart – the metaphoric one, that is – told her he would.

"Of course," she said. "After all, the Digital World isn't _that_ big."

"Yuki-chan, you're my best friend…"

Nyaromon wrapped her tail around him and hugged him as hard as she could. "You're my best friend too, Poyomon."

"Um, Yuki-chan?" Poyomon squeaked.

"Yes?" She was still hugging him, still fighting back the tears.

"You're kind of crushing me."

"Oh!" Nyaromon released him, laughing a tiny bit. "Sorry." She looked at the sky to see the sun was about to set. "Poyomon… I have to go now."

"Oh." Poyomon looked down. A few tiny tears spilled out of his eyes. "Yuki-chan… I'll never forget you."

"Well, of course you won't!" Nyaromon smiled. A single tear fell from her eye, too, before she wiped it away with her tail. "After all, we'll see each other soon, won't we?"

Poyomon nodded. "Right!"

She had to walk away then, towards the gates of Primary Village. She turned around to look at it one last time. She knew she couldn't stay there.

"BYE SNOWY!" the babies called to her.

"Goodbye Nyaromon!" Elecmon called.

"Goodbye everyone!" she called back.

"Yuki-chan!" called Poyomon. Nyaromon saw that it was taking all his energy to call out to her. "I'll see you soon!"

"See you soon, Poyom- Poyo-chan!" Now she couldn't help it anymore, and she stopped trying to control her tears. They streaked down her face as she waved at everyone – but mostly Poyomon – with her tail.

Then she turned around, hot tears almost making it so she couldn't see. She hopped forward determinedly.

Primary Village had been her home since she was born, but it couldn't hold her any longer. She was free; not confined to its walls anymore. Even if she felt sad about leaving the babies – well, one of them – she knew it was time to go.

It was time to start her own adventure.

So that's pretty much the ending. There may be one chapter more, but it depends on if anyone even likes this story. xD So if you want to see another one, please review x3


	6. Epilogue

Epilogue

Gatomon rested happily outside her home in the Digital World, eyes closed and tail swaying to and fro rhythmically. The breeze that ran through blew her ears back a tiny bit, and the last pale rays of sun sent sparkles dancing across her golden tail ring. She lay back on the lakeshore, curled up, as cats do, in a ball. She was dreaming, not quite asleep, but also not awake. That was, until she heard laughter, and the sound of footsteps approaching. Stirring, she woke up, disoriented for a moment. And what had she been dreaming about? She finally opened one clear blue eye to see a small green cat-like Digimon and one large-eyed hamster Digimon with corked ears.

A smile stretched slowly across Gatomon's face. "Hey, kids. What're you doing?"

The greenish cat, her son, reminded her of her past everytime she saw him. After all, it had been awhile since she was Nyaromon, though she had many memories of it. She'd been Nyaromon when she'd been waiting and waiting. She remembered the days in the woods and wilderness, learning how to survive on her own. And, of course, she'd left Primary Village as Nyaromon.

"Mommy, it's dinnertime, Daddy says!" said Tokomon, her daughter. "We're hungry!"

Her other child brought her back as well. Tokomon had once been a Poyomon, after all. And… she still remembered her childhood best friend. She tried not to think of him, because every time she did, she felt a deep sadness in her. She had stayed around Primary Village once she was Nyaromon, and had seen most of the Digimon leaving it and going on further. But she'd never seen Poyomon, or heard his voice. So she'd finally had to move on, because she knew she had a destiny.

She remembered her days with Myotismon, as Salamon and Gatomon. Then she had met Kari, and everything had changed for her. She had finally found her destiny. Fighting alongside her human partner, she had helped change the world, and she had finally accomplished what she always wanted in her dream – to have more light.

But even after all that, and after she'd fallen in love with Patamon, she still remembered her promise to Poyomon. They had said they'd see each other again, and now Gatomon was worried they'd both changed so much that neither would recognize each other anymore. That was, if they ever even saw each other, which she had the sinking feeling they wouldn't.

"We're hungry!" Nyaromon cried, jolting her out of her trance.

Gatomon frowned and got up, brushing grass off her white coat. "Sorry, I guess I fell asleep earlier." She followed her two bouncing children back to their house happily.

Inside, Patamon was waiting. "There you are!" he said happily at seeing Gatomon.

She smiled back, a little sad after thinking of Poyomon. "Yeah," she said.

Patamon's smile faded a tiny bit. After all, he could always tell what Gatomon was feeling. "Why don't you two eat?" he suggested. "We'll be outside, okay?"

Gatomon smiled a tiny bit. She always felt better when she talked to Patamon about her thoughts. Of course, she'd never told him about Poyomon – she wasn't sure why. Well, in a way she was. She had realized later that she'd been in love with him. But they were so little that she hadn't thought of those kinds of things yet. It only occurred later, when she was Salamon, that she couldn't get him off her mind, and she realized. Maybe it was only puppy love, or kitty love in her case. But whatever it was, she would always have a small space in her heart reserved for him, and she felt too guilty about that to tell Patamon. After all, the rest of her heart was for him and their children.

Outside, the sun was disappearing behind the trees. Gatomon and Patamon sat right near their house. They watched the sunset for a few minutes before Patamon spoke up.

"Gato, I know there's something you've been hiding from me," Patamon said, but not in an accusing way.

"What? What would I be hiding from you?" She was surprised.

"I don't know, but you've always been hiding it. I can tell when it's on your mind… I wish you'd tell me what it was."

Gatomon looked down. "I should have told you," she said quietly. "I mean, I don't know why I didn't before. I mean – I just thought you might be jealous, and I already feel guilty, and it didn't seem like it was important –"

"You don't have to tell me now," he said. "Only if you want to. It's just… I want to know."

She nodded. "I know. I want to tell you, too. When we fell in love, we promised each other we'd share everything. And I didn't want to hide this from you." She sighed. "I just… well… back when I was at Primary Village…" She couldn't seem to get past this.

He looked at her, surprised. "What?" he asked.

She couldn't look at him. "Why does that surprise you?"

He shook his head. "No, nevermind. I was just… Keep going…"

She bit her lip. "Well… I was SnowBotamon, you know. That was my Baby form."

Patamon nodded. "Same with Nyaromon," he said, referring to his son. "Wait… Gato…"

"Yes?"

"It's just… I have a story about my days as a Baby, too."

Gatomon was relieved to be holding off her tale as long as she could. "Will you tell me?"

He nodded. "Back when I was a Baby, I… fell in love," he said.

Gatomon couldn't breathe for a second. He had fallen in love? What was that supposed to mean? Did that mean he was still in love with whoever it was?

"With who?" she managed to ask. How could he do this to her? A voice in the back of her head reminded her she was in somewhat the same predicament, and a wave of guilt washed over her. She couldn't hold this against him or she'd be a hypocrite. And she _hated_ hypocrites. But she realized now how much she wanted to be angry at him.

"Her name was… Yuki-chan," Patamon said.

If his first statement had made her stop breathing, this one nearly made her heart stop. Had she just imagined him saying that? But no, how could anyone else have said her old name in the same perfect voice? She realized her paws were shaking the tiniest bit.

This was how she'd felt when he'd first confessed his feelings to her. It was something she'd never dared hope for, something she thought was far too impossible. She'd never even entertained the thought that Patamon had once been Poyomon, _her_ Poyomon. But hadn't Patamon been the one to teach her to never give up hope, that nothing was impossible?

Patamon, for once in his life, misunderstood her expression. The corners of his mouth drooped down, along with his eyes. It was as if his heart was being broken like he thought hers was. But that wasn't how she felt at all. She couldn't speak, she was so happy. Patamon was Poyomon! Poyomon was Patamon! They weren't different, weren't two conflicting loves. They were one and the same.

"I'm so sorry, Gato," Patamon said, sorrow inflicting his voice. "I had to tell you. You were about to tell me your secret, and I had to tell you mine."

"No," Gatomon said. "No, no…" She couldn't seem to say anything else.

"Gato, please don't be sad. It was a long time ago. I love you now." She recognized the look on his face. It was the same look Poyomon had had when he'd been sad. Why hadn't she noticed it earlier?

She lifted her tail and slowly wrapped it around him. He looked confused. "Gato?"

Giving him a hug, she grinned. "Pata," she said. "My secret is that I was in love when I was a Baby too." Before he could react, she added, "To a Poyomon who called me Yuki-chan."

He looked as amazed as she'd felt earlier. "Wh-what?"

"I was SnowBotamon. You were my best friend," she said, smiling even broader.

"That's… that's…" Patamon now seemed to be at a loss for words like she'd been. "…Incredible," he stammered.

She looked at him, smiling. "It is, isn't it?"

He slowly grinned. "Yuki-chan!"

She held him close. "I love you, Poyo-chan. I guess… I've loved you all these years."

"I was scared I'd never see you again! Oh, Yuki-chan… I love you too!" His ears fluttered in happiness.

Meanwhile, a Nyaromon and Tokomon watched them from their door.

"Ew, Mommy and Daddy are gross," Nyaromon said.

"I hope neither of us ever grow up!" Tokomon cried, making a disgusted face.

Gatomon and Patamon turned to see them. Both were smiling from ear to ear.

"Oh, I don't know, Toko," Gatomon said happily. "Take it from me. Sometimes you just have to grow up."

_Whew, okay. xD Adventures in Primary Village is now done. I hoped you liked the last chapter, and of course the whole story. Please review!_


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